Which way is Twitter going?

[MktgRob]

On a number of different forums and in a few articles I have seen these statistics:

• Twitter users grew from ½ to 7 million over 12 months
• Working adults are main audience
• 35-49 year olds are 42 percent of users
• 2-17 year olds are 4 percent of users
• 62 percent access it from work
• About 60 percent of people using Twitter abandon it after a month
• Compared with Facebook and MySpace, Twitter users are disloyal

Followed by a question or a statement from the author on the future of Twitter. The statements fall along the same two lines; 1) it has reached its peak and is now dying off or 2) it is going through growing pains and will continue to thrive because of its explosive popularity.

What do you think? Personally, I am going to suggest that my clients ride this horse for all its worth. If it crashes and burns and they got some business and visibility out of it then the minimal investment was worth it. If it keeps growing and becomes a standard tool of business then they will have established their presence and can continue to benefit.

[manomanjudotcom]

I had the same question in mind.

[MktgRob]

As Twitter is really now beginning to become a major business tool, I think that the 6th point in the list I posted has to be taken with a grain of salt when compared with points 2, 3 & 5. Additionally, I think point 7 is more of an opinion than a fact based on point 6. Give it another 12-18 months and a clearer picture of the viability of Twitter as a business tool will be known.